Although the negotiations on a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Bangladesh and Malaysia is a positive development, past experience shows that agreements on paper alone do not yield the desired results. Implementation remains the biggest challenge.
For this reason, the new agreement should require every stage of the recruitment process to be conducted through digital platforms, establish a cap on recruitment costs, create a joint monitoring mechanism and include an independent system for resolution of complaints. Also, civil society organizations, labor rights groups, and research institutions should be involved to ensure transparency and accountability throughout the system.
The MoU should not be seen merely as an administrative document, but as an opportunity for structural reform of the labor migration system. Its success should be measured not by the number of workers sent abroad, but by its ability to improve worker protection, reduce migration costs, and guarantee decent working conditions.
Ultimately, Bangladesh should move away from measuring success solely by the number of workers sent abroad and instead prioritize policies focused on the safety of migrant workers. The emphasis on transparency, regularization and worker protection during the Prime Minister’s recent visit to Malaysia is an encouraging sign. However, unless these commitments are translated into concrete institutional reforms, progress will not be sustainable.
If the new MoU is successful in making the recruitment system more transparent, reducing the influence of recruitment brokers, controlling migration costs of workers and protecting workers’ rights and expanding opportunities to develop their skills, it could be an important milestone. Otherwise, past failures are likely to return in new forms.
* Dr. Selim Reza is Associate Professor and Coordinator at the Center for Migration Studies, North South University
*The views expressed here are the author’s own.
*This article appeared in Prothom Alo print and online and has been translated by Ayesha Kabir for Prothom Alo English Online.